I want to begin my article this week by congratulating a bunch of our kids and our programs. February 2009 is going to go down as one of the most successful in MFISD history, and that fact comes on the shoulders of many of our kids and staff members. Over the last month, we have recognized students for their success in our fine arts programs. The high school band and choir program both competed at regional competitions and our students excelled. Not only did they gain recognition at these regional contests, they also qualified for the state competitions, and we know they will do great there as well. I appreciate the efforts of our students and the efforts of our band directors and choir directors for the work they have done to make our fine arts program excel.

Along with our musical programs, one of our leadership groups at the high school - the Family, Career, and Community Leaders of America program - also sent students to a regional competition, and we have students who qualified for the state contest as well. FCCLA has become a great outlet for our young leaders to excel, and our sponsors do a wonderful job of pushing the students to better themselves and their community.

One more group I want to recognize this week is our Lady Mustang basketball team, who just completed their season last week. This group of young ladies, through their desire and dedication to be the best, set even higher standards of excellence that have always been a part of our program. We are all very proud of these student/athletes and proud of the coaches who dedicated so much of their time to them. To me, this year’s team will be remembered truly by the size of their hearts and their nonstop determination to win every single game they competed in. The season did not end as we all wanted it to, but our kids gave everything they had all the way to the very end, and we honor them for that.

Aside from recognizing our students and staff members this week, I want to draw everyone’s attention to some very important issues that are being discussed right now in Austin. We have begun the 2009 Legislative session, and this session has become very important to public education in our state. We are in a time of potential change for our schools, and I want to make sure our parents and all MFISD stakeholders understand the actions and/or inactions of our legislature.

About two years ago, I was invited to be a part of a committee called the Public Education Visioning Institute. As stated in our final report, this group was born from the work and ideas of thirty-five public school superintendents who came together to create a new vision for public education in Texas. Both as a school administrator and as a parent of three children, I have had strong reservations about the direction of our schools. Most of my issues have centered around the state’s assessment and accountability programs and the financial system. In my opinion, it is the true responsibility of our schools to prepare students for life after they leave us. This means for many students, we must give them the tools to not only be accepted into a major university, but to complete their courses of study. However, this also means that for many students, our schools must instill in them the knowledge of how to succeed in the workplace. Every MFISD graduate has a different dream, and we have to be a partner to help him/her achieve that dream.

The issues that will come before the legislature this session, and the work that the Visioning Institute undertook, dealt with the diversity of our students. The current system of student assessment (the TAKS test) and the current accountability system (the Academic Excellence Indicator System) do not serve our children as they were designed to do, and the school finance system does not have the capacity or the capability to truly fund schools at the level our children will demand - both now and in the future.

The superintendents on the committee came up with six principles that we felt should be nonnegotiable to developing a school system that will serve the needs of every child.

(1)The New Digital Environment - School districts and the state as a whole must understand the society of which our children are a part. The technologies that make this new digital world possible must be viewed as opportunities and tools that can help us in educating and socializing the young both in and outside the school.

(2)New Learning Standards - The demands of our society today and in the future mandate new learning standards for students so that they will have the values and the capabilities to live, learn, and earn in a world that is truly global and increasingly competitive.

(3)Assessment for Learning - Appropriate and varied types of assessment are essential for informing students about their level of success in ways that affirm and simulate their efforts and for informing their teachers and parents so that more customized learning experiences may be developed. One-shot assessment systems, like TAKS, do nothing to truly identify students’ growth (or lack of), so that these individual experiences can be targeted.

(4)Accountability for Learning - Accountability systems should be carefully designed on a level that honors what students and teachers actually do, that empowers and builds integrity, trust, and commitment to the values that defines the communities and the schools.

(5)Organizational Transformation - Schools and school districts must look within and transform themselves into 21st century learning institutions. For the students to truly excel in the future, schools must understand that the bureaucratic systems of old must be reshaped to better serve our students.

(6)A More Balanced and Reinvigorated State/Local Partnership - Public involvement and community support can meet the demands of new learning standards essential to the success of our children. New levels of trust between the Legislature and local governments will hopefully succeed in bringing back more local control of the schools.

As we progress through the coming months of the legislative session, I will be writing more about these issues as we attempt to reshape our schools around the needs of our children. One thing that strikes me as most important is the simple fact that our kids are individuals and they need to be educated as such. One box does not fit all and one system of learning does not fit all.

I want to thank everyone again for the support our communities give our kids. If anyone has questions about these issues in the article, or questions about anything else, please do not hesitate to come by and see me. You may call and set up an appointment (693-4357) or send me an email with your questions and/or comments - rwarren@mfisd.txed.net